“My position is if your church or your synagogue or your mosque doesn’t want to recognize or
perform same-sex marriage, it doesn’t have to,” Portman said. “And yet I think it should be legal,
and I don’t see that as inconsistent.”

Portman said the issue should be decided not by the courts — many of which have played a role in
overturning state bans on same-sex marriage — but at the state level by voters.

“This makes me unpopular with some groups on both sides,” he said. “That’s the way that it will
more naturally unfold if we allow it to, and I think it’s going to end up being more positive for
the rights of my son and other gay and lesbian people.”

And while he is still in the minority in the Republican Party, Portman said he sees a change. He
talked of meeting with a group of College Republicans from Ohio a couple of months ago and getting
the overwhelming sense that the audience couldn’t understand why it was an issue because they
support gay marriage.

“Those are the next generation of Republicans,” he said.

Portman, whose name has been mentioned as a potential candidate for president in 2016, would
likely be the only Republican candidate who publicly supports gay marriage. As for his decision to
run, Portman said he’s more focused representing Ohioans during the “frustrating times in
Washington” and his role as the finance director for the National Republican Senatorial
Committee.

Portman also touched on other issues such as the conflict between Ukraine and Russia, saying the
Obama administration has been “speaking loudly and carrying no stick” when it comes to dealing with
Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The U.S. should be tougher with Russia right now, Portman said, even while acknowledging that
Americans have war fatigue. He said the U.S. should provide support not only in rhetoric to the
Ukrainian people but also provide the defensive weapons they need, from body armor and training to
anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapons.